Decorated Navy hero goes on trial

Published: April 27, 2004 8:00 PM

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) A decorated Navy hero went on trial Tuesday for a $70,000 armed robbery, claiming he was so depressed he hatched a drug-addled plan to kill himself and provide his wife and son with the proceeds.Mark Samples has pleaded innocent by reason of insanity to the May 3, 2001, heist of a credit union.This case is not a whodunit, defense attorney Robert Richman said in opening statements. This is a whydunit.But Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Newberry said Samples acted with methodical determination in pulling off the robbery taping over the serial number on his gun so it couldnt be traced back to him, and then diving into the Mississippi River in scuba gear to make his escape.Both sides agreed the story leading to the robbery began with the mistaken missile attack on the USS Stark in 1987 while it was patrolling in the Persian Gulf.Iraqi missiles blew a hole in the side of the frigate, killing 37 sailors.Samples, then 24, moved several Stinger missiles from the path of spreading fires, then spent 13 hours hosing down 36 missiles as a 2,000-degree fire raged behind the next bulkhead.Richman told jurors Samples had crawled through thick smoke and over dead bodies so he could fight the fire. One of the bodies belonged to his best friend.Samples was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal, a peacetime award for heroism. He left the Navy in 1990, but grew depressed when he became inactive because of a back injury and gained weight, Richman said.He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder, Richman said. In addition, doctors prescribed interferon to treat Samples Hepatitis C, contracted from a tattoo while in the Navy.Richman said the drug compounded Samples depression, and made him paranoid, suicidal, even homicidal. He said Samples would plot his wifes death, only to emerge from the drugs grip feeling guilty for thinking such things.Samples wanted to kill himself to protect his wife, but he worried his life insurance policy wouldnt pay if he committed suicide, Richman said. A robbery would bring in money to leave his family, leaving him free to kill himself, Richman said.In his deluded state, he believed that robbing the bank was the right thing to do. It was the only thing to do, Richman said.The FBI tracked a handgun dropped during the robbery to Samples, who fled with his 2-year-old son named after Samples friend who died on the Stark while awaiting trial in 2002.The two were found 15 months later in East Rochester, Ohio, a small Ohio town near the West Virginia state line.